The Fourth National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES IV), the next national survey to monitor the nation's health, will be conducted from 1998-2004. An oral health component will be included. The principal sponsor will be the NIDR with planning and consultation encompassing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The general objectives are to monitor oral health status, risk factors for oral diseases, and access to preventive and treatment services. The clinical oral examination includes assessment of oral soft tissues, dental caries, periodontal health status, tooth retention, and collection of saliva and epithelial cells. A direct data entry system is under development to permit accurate and efficient collection of oral examination data. The data entry system will be incorporated into the new data collection system for the entire survey. The objective is to have data available rapidly. This year, interagency agreements among NIDR and CDC were implemented. A steering committee, chaired jointly by NIDR and the CDC was constituted and work groups for the different oral health components and start-up activities began development of protocols, training materials and pilot test activities. A WEB page is being developed as a means of wide communication about the survey. A pilot test of some modified and new assessment indices was conducted to evaluate feasibility of new material. Specifications for the electronic data collection system for each oral component were developed in conjunction with contractor. New training materials are being developed for the 1998 pilot test. Questionnaire items were defined for OMB clearance. An intramural/extramural work group is being established to help guide all parts of oral health protocol from planning to execution to analysis.